In the last few years,
Chembur as a suburb has been growing not only in terms of real estate
development but also in terms of population.

With more people comes the added burden of connectivity and the firstquestion that comes
to mind is whether the suburbís infrastructure facilities can match the rate
at the which it is growing.

If the government is to be believed and the construction pace of roads and
subways is anything to go by, Chembur will soon be one of the best-connected
suburbs in the city; not only on the Central line but also in comparison to the
the Western suburbs.

To further their claim, the government has already started work on the ambitious
Santacruz-Chembur Link Road, Mumbaiís first double-decker flyover, and claims
that it will be over by 2006.

Apart from this, the authorities have also decided to widen the busy
Sion-Trombay Road along with widening the Eastern Express Highway, in order to
decongest heavy traffic in the suburb.

metrotakes
a look at the various projects that will help solve the traffic woes of Chembur
residents.

Vehicular subway at Kurla station

A pivotal project
that has been commissioned is the subway at Kurla station. As of now, commuters
have to climb the bridge to travel to Kurla (W), from where important bus routes
to various parts of Mumbai
originate.

However, this subway will ensure that commuters donít have to go through that
hassle.

The project
Work on the Kurla subway is 80 per cent complete.

The 7.5-metre wide
vehicular subway will be open only to light motor vehicles, including
two-wheelers and passenger cars. The subway will connect Kurla east to west.

When will it be completedThe
subway will be open for commuters after the monsoon.

7.5-metreThe total width of
the vehicular subway

Rs 3.5 croreThe total cost
of the Kurla project

Widening of Eastern Express Highway

This MUIP project
has got delayed due to the controversy about the status of slumdwellers. The
project was expected to be complete before June 2005.

However, procedural delays have hampered its progress.

The projectThe
aim of the project is to decongest traffic on the Eastern Express Highway by
widening it by 17.5 metres. The project also includes plans to construct a
subway.

When will it be completedThe
project will be completed after the monsoon.

17.5 metresThe width by which
the Highway will be widened

Rs 30 croreThe total cost of
the MUIP road-widening project

Santacruz-Chembur Link Road

The most ambitious
project of the suburb, the Santacruz-Chembur Link Road is expected to reduce
travel time between Santacruz and Amar Mahal junction by 30 minutes. Work on the
SCLR project is on in full swing.

This
flyover will be Mumbaiís longest, and officially the cityís first viaduct.
It will cut your travel time from Chembur to Santacruz to a mere 10 minutes.
Yet, these arenít the coolest things about it. That little award goes to the
fact that it will be a double-decker.

Public Works Minister Anil Deshmukh, who yesterday unveiled a roadmap that
envisions 42 new flyovers for the city, says the two-level flyover will be
nothing short of an engineering marvel.

Scheduled to be completed by December 2006 at a cost of Rs 125 crore, the
viaduct will offer you a host of options. If youíre on the lowest level ó
the road ó youíll land up in Kurla.

Take the first level and you could reach Kurla Terminus or Nehru Nagar. The top
level will get you to Amar Mahal Junction, Chembur.

The two-level flyover will be 2.2 km long, while the total length of the road
will be 6.45 km. The work required includes restructuring, widening and
strengthening over 3.5 km of existing roads.

The SCLR, as it is called, is part of the Rs 4,536 crore Mumbai Urban
Infrastructure Project, and will ease traffic congestion at Sion. Once it is
complete, you wonít have to travel all the way from Santacruz to Bandra to
Sion and then on to Chembur.

The journey, which takes one-and-a-half hours today will shrink to 10 minutes
once the viaduct is ready.

The Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation has already begun work on the
project and the Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority is busy
relocating 3,500 shanties, Deshmukh said.

The
projectThe
flyover will begin from Mithi river, continue to Eastern Express Highway and end
at Amar Mahal junction near Chembur.

The lower level will be divided into two parts. The left portion will be
elevated from Kurla railway station to Tilak Nagar Railway Terminus and the
right portion will meet SG Barve Marg near Nehru Nagar, Kurla (E).

Besides reducing travel time, the flyover will also help decongest traffic on
the Eastern Express Highway and Sion-Trombay Road, besides GM Road, near Amar
Mahal.

Around 3,000 slumdwellers from Kurla and Chembur were displaced in the
construction process but the MMRDA has already constructed flats to rehabilitate
them.

When will it be completed
In 200630 minutesThe amount by which
commute time will be reduced between Santacruz and Amar Mahal junction